M2SYS Technology, a biometric technology research and development company, announced today its release of Bio-Plugin Parallel Server, a highly scalable fingerprint recognition system that leverages distributed node balancing for fast, 1:N identification of large databases. Through the utilization of its multi-node architecture, Parallel Server can compare 25,000 fingerprints per second per match server node (1 million/5 sec in 16 node configuration). Unlike many parallel processing software solutions, Bio-Plugin Parallel Server does not require a large upfront hardware investment. Customers can start with a standard single server configuration; as the fingerprint database grows over time, the system can be easily scaled by adding more standard, off-the-shelf, PC-based server nodes.

Because of its disparateness, this new addition to the Bio-Plugin family will have an immediate impact on the biometric marketplace. Software companies that have been disenchanted with fingerprint technology because of database size or insufficient speed will now be able to adopt Bio-Plugin due to the infinite scalability of Parallel Server; and, since it relies upon the unique Bio-Plugin integration methodology, they can leverage this technology with virtually no development.

Markets such as public safety, healthcare and education, where hundreds of thousands of potential fingerprints often share one centralized server, will greatly benefit from this technology. Prior to Parallel Server, the response time for a database of this magnitude could be up to a few minutes; however, with Parallel Server, this response time has been reduced to just a few seconds. Other markets such as banking, POS, and hospitality are also no exception.

“In a market traditionally driven by SDK’s, M2SYS has emerged as one of the leading providers of scalable, vendor independent, turnkey biometric technologies,” according to M2SYS CEO & Chief Scientist Mizan Rahman. “Bio-Plugin has been adopted by hundreds of software integrators worldwide. Now, with Parallel Sever, integrators will be able to use this same proven technology in environments previously not feasible because of server response time,” Rahman said.

European Union Commissioner for Justice Franco Frattini holds up his new biometric passport during a media conference at EU headquarters in Brussels, Thursday, June 29, 2006. EU governments should be ready to issue new secure biometric passports containing facial images by Aug. 28 at the latest, a senior official said Thursday. By 2009, the passports will also include two fingerprints from the passport holder in the travel document, EU Justice and Home Affairs Commissioner Franco Frattini said.

Source - Associated Press

The plusID authenticates a user’s identity with their fingerprint and enables secure access to buildings and other physical facilities, local and remote computers and networks, and online or onsite financial transactions. The plusID works with existing, installed security infrastructure, making deployment quick and affordable with just one secure wireless device.

The plusID75 is the first product in Privaris‘ new plusID line of self-contained biometric security products. In the coming months, Privaris will announce new plusID variations to address long-range vehicle gate access, government security initiatives (such as Personal Identity Verification or PIV), and authentication for financial and retail applications. plusID75 will begin shipping in August 2006, with full production in October 2006.

The device, which is Bluetooth, proximity RF, and USB enabled, includes a fingerprint sensor, buttons for application selection, LED status indicators, an LCD for one-time password display, a USB connector, on-board fingerprint processing, cryptographic services, a rechargeable battery, and credential transmission capability at multiple RF frequencies.

Source - Gizmag

Precise Biometrics AB develops and sells world leading and user friendly biometric security solutions based on fingerprint and smart cards, is one of the members in, the recently formed HSPD-12 Interoperability Consortium in the US. The Consortium will ensure that US federal agencies’ HSPD-12 Directive requirements are met. The Directive means that all US Federal agencies must issue smart ID cards with biometrics to all employees and contractors.

SafeNet Inc. is the founder of the Consortium and is also an established partner of Precise Biometrics having worked together on several projects for US federal agencies. Besides SafeNet, the HSPD-12 Consortium is made up of seven other industry leading companies including Corestreet Ltd., Entrust, Forum Systems Inc., Intercede, Omnikey, Precise Biometrics Inc., and Probaris Technologies. All companies in the Consortium have great competence within different product areas and are committed to educating and providing an interoperable solution for federal agencies and system integrators. (more…)

Members of the OASIS international standards consortium are currently developing a standard for invoking biometrics-based ID assurance via Web services and service-orientated architectures. The newly founded OASIS Biometric Identity Assurance Services (BIAS) Integration Technical Committee looks to complement efforts of the International Committee for IT Standards (INCITS), a standards development group.

Where INCITS is working to define the taxonomy of functions that form a framework for deploying identity assurance in the biometrics and security industries, OASIS will define the methods and bindings by which that framework can be used within XML-based transactional services. The two companion standards are expected to reference one another.

“We expect that the INCITS and OASIS initiatives will inform and improve on one another,” noted Karen Higgenbottom, chair of the INCITS executive board, which also serves as ANSI’s Technical Advisory Group for ISO/IEC Joint Technical Committee 1. “BIAS should significantly increase the opportunities for implementing biometric functions in XML-based systems. Likewise, current SOA methods for exchanging information and transactions data may provide useful parameters and patterns for the broader application of BIAS data in the security industry.”

“Biometric systems are becoming more complex as they are integrated into larger identity management and credentialing systems,” observed Catherine Tilton of Daon, chair of the OASIS BIAS Integration Technical Committee. “At the same time, there is a growing need for data sharing and reuse of resources and services within and across organizations. Today, custom built, proprietary solutions are the only option. The availability of a standard biometric services interface will allow systems to be implemented on an open architecture and provide users with greater choice in products and services.”

“This project represents complementary development efforts between OASIS and INCITS, and we hope it will serve as a model for future collaboration,” stated James Bryce Clark, director of standards development at OASIS. “It offers a compelling opportunity for existing SOA and XML security technologies to more broadly consume biometric technologies.”